Ball piston pump



Q) QL ...uit .5 F/G. l l/ Oct. 12, 1954 .1,J. GNTHER 2,591,348

BALL PISTON PUMP Filed Jan. 8, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l A TroRNeYs.

Oct. l2., 1954 1 J. GNTHER 2,691,348

BALL PISTON PUMP Filed Jan. 8, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fa 2 NVEN' 019Johannes j. @UNT/lf@ BY." a (U ATTORNEYS.

Patented Oct. 12, 1954 UNITED y --jfe2i6912348f Y BALLQPJSTON PUMPJohannes Joseph Gnther, -Hamburg-Harburg, Germany, assigner-Ito himselfand MalteiVil- `helm .Itbrmliom` andOlg'a Maria-CarolinaiiRnn- .bom,;.bothxofr'Lingarden, Ystad, Sweden ApplicationJanuary 8, 1952', Serial No.' 265,477

3 (Elaims.y

In the known ball pumps of the recent art, the

driving Ashaft as well asV theloose-sha-ft are each securelycoupledto adouble actionpiston, Where-- inthe-pistons are turnedoverat- 90-toi'eachi other: These ball pumpsv have-only'four-A piston chambers.The ballitself isturned,`l by rotation.: of'thedriving shaft; bythe'piston of'thedrivingy shaft4 acting as' aY driver, andfisdirected insuch a manner bythepiston of theloosefsliaft'that' the ball` carries'out` anrv oscillatory movement,

whereby'4v the piston chambers alternately" openy and. close; ThepumpingprocessV is thereby car*-t riediout.v Theball itself is notcoupledlf'ast-f to one'ofV the two shafts but liesloosely-in the housing and is-- controlledV by thefpistonA inside thefballcupg'ofv thehousing: 4The-ball ofthispump` will therefore -=be referred to' as` aball-piston', becaus'eit carriesout the -pumpingprocess whilst therpiston-itself only carries outa rotary'movement on'its'shaft;

The ball pumps .made in practice and whicharealsa made reversible,servefor thev feeding oftviscouszliquids. Alli efforts' to use the'v ballpumps-also for' uid drivesl 'havef hithertoA been unsuccessful. `With'the-present trials` with ball pumps of" th'e previous' constructionstheres-wereestablishedas; definite failings; f

' 1'. Withlowdriving' force, the -ball is forced against the housing bythe liquid pressure, where-- Harder againstr` the" housing and increasesthe power-consuming friction.

4': Because'ofthe low numberof the pistons of the-knownball pump inthedead-point position onlyone-piston chamber is in operation on thesuction side-andone-on the pressure side, where-r the` rotation momentas well` as the fluid stream will be--too disproportionate. It has beenfound-that the-above named failings are inherent in' the construction ofthe ball pump, and, in" the conditionfoftheir technical developmenthitherto, couldnot beovercome.

' The. advancein the-practice whichhasbeen in question' for 3'0 years i.e.' fixed; positioning of the ball on afthrough-going:drivingi shaftandelimination of the -loose shaft -is now-vfnliillediby.

the-present invention;

The present inventiondiscloses a basically al-` (a) Now vonlyone'strongdriving'shaft passing' through the ball f is `coupledi fasttorthe .ballf andv carried in bearingsat bothV side ofiA the housing. Bythismeans, and through the arrangement :of special controlling. members.for the piston, the loose=shaft1canwbe eliminated'. Th'eviluid pressurewill hereinafter. act from. the ball.' di-rectlyf onv the drivingshaftand from `,this Llatter on thef shaft bearings'at-both sides.The-unfavourable oscillating movement ofthe ballfintheball pump..

of known construction is-` now/.avoided soA that this latter, inthepresentlinvention, only. carries out ysimple rotary. motion.

(b) The prejudiciali effect of the centrifugal force is borne by thethrough-goingdrivingtshaft,'

because the ball canl nollonger bepressedsagainst thehousing and thus/nofriction. can occurbe-l tween the ball and housing;

Also, the swinging forces operatingson the ve pump y pistons will bevremoved by.' suitableprovi' sionsfso that,v herealso,fno-frictionzon thehouse ing can take place. th'efdriving fluid will thereby be avoided.

(cl-'In the-present embodimentanumber of' pistonsof'simple-operation canbearranged-in a circle, Wherebyvthe rotational moment yasewell as thefluid stream of the pump will boe-increasingly proportional.

(d) The pumpinggprocess is carried' outbythe half of the ball'lyingopposite to'thedrivingggside; whilst at the otherssicieare`v disposedYthe. con'-r trollingA means. By this means, an. Vespecially compactvconstruction ofthe pumpl is madepossible.

(e) The controlling part. permitsa control. of the driving quantitiesand an alteration of direction of the uidstream with directionotrotation and speed of rotation ofthemotor remaining the same.

The higher` working efficiency ofi the pump according to the presentinvention. to' be.` expectedfrom the aboveenamedproposals will permitits application as primary: and; secondary parts-ofl atransmission:

An unallowable 2 heatingl cfa The pump is illustrated by way of anexample as a primary driver in the drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 shows a vertical section of the machine along the line A--B ofFig. 2 with placing of the control at highest power.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of Fig. 1 along the line C-D or Cl---D1in Fig. 3, with positioning of the controlling member at no-loadrunning.

Fig. 3 is a view of the ball, (part I) and arcuate piston (parts 2 to 6)and driving shaft (part l), from D or B.

Fig. 4 is a partial section of Fig. 2 along E-F.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the coupling.

Fig. 6 is a plan View on the driver part IIa and the arcuate piston 2.

The pump parts I to 1 and I0 to I2 remain, with all movements, at thesame separation from the middle point of the ball.

The pump is driven by the through-going driving shaft 'l directlycoupled with the motor, which shaft is carried in bearings 2B and 2I atboth sides of the housing I4. The ball body I is rigidly coupled to thedriving shaft l. If the shaft 1 is set in rotary motion the part I andthe arcuate pistons 2 to 6 are simultaneously carried therewith and intheir turn the parts I I, 8, il, I and I5 are set in rotary motion bythe driver IIa about an axis O-P inclined at an angle a to the shaft 1.By this means the pump chambers are opened and closed one after theother, and the pumping process thus carried out.

As is shown in Figs. l and 3, the piston chamber at 2 is quite open andiilled after the suction. With further gradual rotation of the ball Ipast the position of the arcuate pistons and 5, up to rotation about180, the piston chamber will be completely closed and thereby emptied.With rotation of the ball back into its starting position, there isagain the gradual sucking in of the liquid up to complete filling of thechamber. At each reversing and positioning of the stationary butadjustable support I2 one side of the ball becomes the pressure side andthe other side the suction side. ning the axis O--P corresponds with theshaft axis. The position of the axis O-P is controlled by the controlmember i3 through the support I2.

Part I2 is movably carried at I6 and engages at I1 in the rotary pistoncarrier Il whereby the rotary movement thereof about the axis O-P ismade possible.

Instead of the plain bearings I'I there can be used ball bearings. Inorder to prevent the rising of the parts I2 and II from their bearingsat I6 and I1, the piston carrier I I is movably carried at IS on thereduced ball half I.

In order to permit reversal, there is provided in the piston carrier IIa bell-shaped cavity 22 and in the support I2 a slot 23, in order toallow the shaft 'I to pass unhindered through the parts I2 and II.

Fig. 3 shows the ball I with 5 rectangular cavities in which the arcuatepistons 2 to 6 are disposed. The section lines of the ve central planesof these cavities correspond with the shaft axis.

The movements of the pistons. occur on the meridians of the ball.Nevertheless, an inaccuracy of manufacture, that is to say a smalldeviation of the arcuate pistons 2 to 6 from the meridian, is withoutprejudicial eect on the pumping process, in so far as the ball cavitieseach remain in a plane.

With the rotation of the ball I the ends of the With no-load runpistons2 to 6 alter their distance from the axis 1. Thereby there is alsoaltered the opposite position of these ends in the circumferentialdirection. As a result of this, there is simultaneously brought about,as shown in broken line in Fig. 5, a rotation of the parts I0, II and I5up to the maximum angle a as far as positioning of the arcuate pistons 2to E at the piston carrier Il. This movement is made possible by thelinkage consisting of the cylinder 8 constructed transversely in thecylindrical part 9 and the ring I0 similarly movably engaging therein.The parts 8 and 9 can be replaced by a ball joint. The ring Ill has fivecavities for the driver IIa. The parts I5 transfer the pressure removedfrom the piston carrier II onto the arcuate pistons 2 to 5 (pistonpressure) whilst part I0 fixes the arcuate pistons 2 to 6 in theirposition to the piston carrier II, thereby allowing the alteration ofthe piston position at the opposite side.

By this linkage, moreover, inaccuracies in the manufacture of the pumpparts will be compensated for, so that power-absorbing binding anddisproportionate requirements of the pump parts will be avoided. Thedrivers Ila are in movable pre-tensioned contact at I9 with the arcuatepistons 2 to 6. The separation a in Fig. 6 between the driver IIal andthe arcuate piston 2 is stipulated by the opposite separation of thearcuate pistons 2 to 6 altered by the rotation of the ball, so that withrotation of the ball I the drivers do not all come into operationsimultaneously. The driver Ila which bears at I9 with tension on thearcuate pistons 2 to G, prevents in this way the prejudicial action ofcentrifugal force on the arcuate pistons 2 to 6 and the raising thereoffrom the ball I and thus also the friction of the arcuate pistons 2 to 6on the housing walls I4. The pump works without valve means.

In application as a hydraulic motor the control parts I3 and I2 can beomitted and piston carrier II be carried at I1 in the housing I4because, for example, with ships gear change and reversing gear thecontrol of the speed and direction of rotation of the ships screw willbe carried out from the crank I3 at the primary-part of the drivingmotor.

For lathes, power vehicles and automobiles the same applies.

- I claim:

l. A fluid pump comprising in combination a stationary housing having aspherical surface therein and inlet and outlet port means providingcommunication between the interior and exterior of the housing, bearingsmounted in the housing at opposite sides thereof, a rotary driving shaftcarried in said bearings and disposed diametrically through the housing,a rotary ball secured on the driving shaft and forming a close fit butnot in contact with the spherical surface of the housing, said ballhaving a number of peripheral pumping chambers therein equallyspacedcircumferentially about the axis of rotation of the ball, each pumpingchamber being arcuate and having its central plane coincident with theaxis of the driving shaft, each such pumping chamber opening at theperiphery of the ball and being bounded thereat by the spherical surfaceof the housing, a stationary support within the housing, a rotary pistoncarrier journalled thereon with the axis of rotation of the pistoncarrier inclined with respect to the axis of rotation of the ball, and anumber of arcuate pistons disposed one in each pumping chamber of theball and secured to the piston carrier such that the pistons rotateabout an axis parallel to that of the piston carrier and correspondinglyinclined to the axis of the ball whereby rotation of the ball andpistons therein causes the pistons to be reciprocated arcuately in thepumping chambers about an axis perpendicular to the axis of said drivingshaft, the inlet port means of the housing opening at the sphericalsurface thereof at a position to correspond to a greater' volume of eachpumping chamber as the piston moves therein, and the outlet port meansof the housing opening at the spherical surface thereof at a position tocorrespond to a lesser volume of each pumping chamber as the pistonmoves therein.

2. A fluid pump comprising in combination a stationary housing having aspherical surface therein and inlet and outlet port means providingcommunication between the interior and exterior of the housing, bearingsmounted in the housing at opposite sides thereof, a rotary driving shaftcarried in said bearings and disposed diametrically through the housing,a rotary ball secured on the driving shaft and forming a close fit butnot in contact With the spherical surface of the housing, said ballhaving a number of peripheral pumping chambers therein equallyspacedcircumferentia-lly about the axis of rotation of the ball, each pumpingchamber being arcuate and having 'its central plane coincident with theaxis of the driving shaft, each such pumping chamber opening at theperiphery of the ball and being bounded thereat by the spherical surfaceof the housing, a non-rotary but adjustable support mounted in thehousing for movement within limits about an axis coincident with thecentre of the ball and at right angles to the axis of the driving shaft,said support having an elongated slot receiving the driving shaft, meanswithin the housing in engagement with said support and protrudingexternally from the housing for adjustment of the position of thesupport from the exterior, a rotary piston carrier journalled' on thesupport with the axis of rotation of the piston carrier at an angle tothe axis of rotation of the ball according to the position of adjustmentof the support, and a number of arcuate pistons disposed one in eachpumping chamber of the ball and secured to the piston carrier forrotation about an axis parallel to that of the piston carrier and at acorresponding angle to the axis of rotation of the ball whereby ro'-tation of the ball and pistons therein causes the pistons to bereciprocated arcuately in the pumping chambers about an axisperpendicular tol the axis of said driving shaft, the inlet port meansof the housing opening at the spherical surface thereof at a position tocorrespond to a greater volume of each pumping chamber as the pistonmoves therein, and the outlet port means of the housing opening at thespherical surface thereof at a position to correspond to a lesser volumeof each pumping chamber as the piston moves therein.

3. A fluid pump comprising in combination a stationary housing having aspherical surface therein and inlet and outlet port means providingcommunication between the interior and exterior of the housing, bearingsmounted in the housing at opposite sides thereof, a rotary driving shaftcarried in said bearings and disposed din ametrically through thehousing, a rotary ball secured on the driving shaft and forming a closefit but not in contact with the spherical surface of the housing, saidball having a number of pumping chambers therein equally-spacedcircumferentially about the axis of rotation of the ball, each pumpingchamber being arcuate and having its central plane coincident with theaxis of the driving shaft, each such pumping charnber opening at theperiphery of the ball and being bounded thereat by the spherical surfaceof the housing, a non-rotary but adjustable support mounted in thehousing for movement within limits about an axis coincident with thecentre of the ball and at right angles to the axis of the driving shaft,said support having an elongated slot receiving the driving shaft, meanswithin the housing in engagement with said support and protrudingexternally from the housing for adjustment of the position of thesupport from the exterior, a rotary piston carrier journalled on thesupport with its axis of rotation at an ang-le to the axis of rotationof the ball according to the position of adjustment of the support,` aring on the support coaxial with the carrier, a number of arcuatepistons disposed one in each of the pumping chambers of the ball andslidably engaged with the ring for circumferential movement with respectto the carrier, the pistons being rotatable With the carrier about anaxis at an angle to the axis of the ball whereby rotation of the balland pistons therein causes the pistons to be recip-rocated arcuately inthe pumping chambers about an axis perpendicular to the axis of saiddriving shaft, an annular pressure plate arranged on the carrier betweenthe carrier and the pistons to receive the thrust of the pistons duringpumping, and a resilient annular flange on the carrier engaged undertension with each piston to urge the piston Iinwardly against the balland prevent'outward movement of the piston under centrifugal force, theinlet port means of the housing opening at the spherical surface thereofat a position to correspond toa greater volume of each chamber as thepiston moves therein, and the outlet port means of the housing openingat the spherical surface thereof at a position to correspond to a lesservolume of each pumping chamber as the piston moves therein.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 826,985 Appel July 24, 1906 1,904,373 Kempthorne Apr. 18, 19331,967,167 Weis July 17, 1934 2,094,143 Cady Sept. 28, 1937 2,353,780Neuland July 18, 1944 2,431,122 Jakobsen Nov. 18, 1947 2,501,998 DutreyMar. 28, 1950 2,525,907 Johnston Oct. 17, 1950

